The basic concept is that as a merc captain, you don’t deal with micromanagement issues such as maintaining a crew or haggling for items with merchants. Instead, your job is to ”make as much money as possible and build the coolest and deadliest ship in the known universe.”
The developer goes on to say: “Your job is really to survive and make a good living in the meantime. You can pick the side that you feel is right and help them conquer the galaxy for its own good. You can pick the side that you think is going to win and go along for the ride. You can even try to play the races against each other and simply try to pick the winning side at the last second.
“You might just be a small mercenary ship but you have a lot of influence in the direction of the galaxy. You can scout out suitable planets to be colonized. You can attack and destroy defenses. You can find and possibly even steal technology to give to the race of your choice. You can even find items and arm whoever you want, including yourself.
“At the very beginning you start with a small escort ship, but every so many levels you can upgrade to a larger ship like a frigate, destroyer, cruiser, battleship, all of the way up to a flagship.”
The concept has some merits, but it seems like there are some exploitable holes (like, what if a significant population of players decide to back a single faction), but the idea of being a small fish in an ocean of combat does have appeal.